Agronomist
: Job Details :

Summary The incumbent serves as a conservation Agronomist in Texas. The conservation agronomist provides technical guidance and assistance for the agronomic phases of all NRCS programs in State/Field offices. This is a GS-07/09 position with a full performance level of GS-11 (salary range of $72,553 to $94,317). Responsibilities Provides technical leadership and assistance in agronomic, precision agriculture, and soil health to individual land users or groups of land users. Assess and evaluate soil and water resource management problems and farming practices on individual or multiple tracts of land in the assigned area. Evaluate effectiveness of agronomic practices, identify technical problems and/or deficiencies, recommend improvements, and motivate landowners to implement and maintain sound conservation management systems Assist with vegetative and management practices to secure a balanced program of soil and moisture conservation. Assist in conducting on-the-job and formal training in agronomy to internal and external customers, providing information to field offices on agronomic techniques for inventorying, analyzing, and selecting treatment alternatives. Provide technical assistance in promoting conservation tillage, crop rotations, and nutrient and pest management through tours, conferences, and direct assistance to field office personnel and producers. Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement including time-in-grade restrictions, specialized experience and/or education, as defined below. Basic Education Requirement: Degree: Degree: agronomy; or related discipline of science that included at least 30 semester hours of course work in the basic plant sciences, including at least 15 semester hours in agronomic subjects, such as those dealing with plant breeding, crop production, and soil and crop management. OR Combination of education and experience: at least 30 semester hours in the basic plant sciences, including a minimum of 15 semester hours in agronomic subjects, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. In addition to meeting one of the Basic Requirements listed above, applicants must meet the following Minimum Qualifications Requirement in order to be considered for the respective grade levels listed below: GS-07 Specialized Experience: You must have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-5 level or higher in the Federal service (or private sector equivalent) demonstrating experience and knowledge of agronomy, hydrology, biology, soils, and practical engineering techniques and other natural resource conservation principles, methods and techniques. Specialized experience must include: Providing technical guidance and assistance to personnel and producers on natural resources conservation measures, water quality projects, grazing lands management, soil health, crop science and/or soil science; and recommending development and treatment alternatives for water quality plans or recurring natural resources conservation projects. OR Superior Academic Achievement in a bachelor's degree curriculum directly related to the work of the position. To qualify for superior academic achievement, you must have ONE of the following: (1) standing in the upper third of your college class or major subdivision at the time you apply; (2) grade point average of B (3.0 on a 4.0 scale) or its equivalent for all courses completed, either (a) at the time of application or (b) during the last 2 years of your undergraduate curriculum; (3) B+ (3.5 on a 4.0 scale) or its equivalent for all courses completed in a related discipline, either (a) at the time of application or (b) during the last 2 years of your undergraduate curriculum; OR (4) election to membership in one of the national honorary scholastic societies that meets the requirements of the Association of College Honor Society; OR Substitution of education in lieu of specialized experience: Possess one year of graduate level education in soil conservation or related agricultural or natural resource discipline such as agronomy, soil science, forestry, agricultural education, or agricultural engineering; OR Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of graduate-level education and experience, as described above, may be used to qualify for this position. This combination must have equipped you with the necessary knowledge and/or experience to successfully perform the duties of this position. Combinations of experience and education must total at least 100% as outlined in OPM Qualifications policy. GS-09 Specialized Experience: You must possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 or higher in the Federal service (or private sector equivalent). demonstrating experience and knowledge of agronomy, hydrology, biology, soils, and practical engineering techniques and other natural resource conservation principles, methods and techniques. Specialized experience must include: Providing technical guidance and direct assistance to personnel and producers to carry out natural resource's conservation planning and application for agronomic practices; solving complex agronomic problems on individual farms or group projects; assisting with vegetative and management practices to secure a balanced program of soil and moisture conservation; and assisting in the development of resource management systems. OR Substitution of education in lieu of specialized experience: Possess 2 year(s) of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree in soil conservation or a related agricultural or natural resource discipline such as agronomy, soil science, forestry, agricultural education, or agricultural engineering; OR Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of graduate-level education and experience, as described above, may be used to qualify for this position. This combination must have equipped you with the necessary knowledge and/or experience to successfully perform the duties of this position. Combinations of experience and education must total at least 100% as outlined in OPM Qualifications policy. For more information on the qualifications for this position, click here: Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Education You must submit a copy of your college transcripts or a list of college courses with credit hours, dates completed, and grades received to verify all education requirements (i.e. substitution of education and/or basic education requirement). If a relevant course is not clearly qualifying (e.g. special topic, seminar, research, thesis, obscure or misleading course title, etc.), please submit an official course syllabi and/or detailed course description from the university/college for that particular course to ensure you are properly evaluated. Please note that qualifications determinations are based solely on the information submitted for each particular vacancy announcement. You must document all requirements on every vacancy; we cannot use previous determinations as a basis for rating. All required information must be received by the closing date of this announcement, and non-submission of all required documents/documentation will result in non-consideration. Unofficial transcripts will be accepted. This information must be received by the closing date of this announcement. Non-submission of these documents will result in non-consideration. Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Applicants must, therefore, only report attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Applicants can verify accreditation via this link. All education claimed by applicants will be verified accordingly. Important: If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. Click on this link for more information. Additional Information For more information on OPM's authorization of Direct Hire Authority, please visit Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) or Reemployment Priority List (RPL): Visit the OPM website for information on how to apply as a CTAP or RPL eligible. To exercise selection priority for this vacancy, CTAP/RPL candidates must meet the basic eligibility requirements and all selective factors. CTAP candidates must be rated and determined to be well qualified (or above) based on an evaluation of the competencies listed in the How You Will Be Evaluated section. When assessed through a score-based category rating method, CTAP applicants must receive a rating of at least 85 out of a possible 100. Promotion Potential: If you are selected for a position with further promotion potential, you will be placed under a career development plan, and may be non-competitively promoted if you successfully complete the requirements and if recommended by management. However, promotion is neither implied nor guaranteed. Physical Demands: The work requires regular and recurring physical exertion related to conservation work. such as walking on rough terrain, jumping ditches and furrows, or climbing steep banks, as well as work in an office setting and utilizing computers. Work Environment: The work requires regular and recurring physical exertion related to conservation work. such as walking on rough terrain, jumping ditches and furrows, or climbing steep banks as well as work in an office setting. PLEASE NOTE: In the interest of filling these positions as efficiently as possible, we are requiring the following: If called for an interview, applicants must be available to interview within 3 business days of being contacted. If a tentative job offer is extended, selectee will have 2 business days in which to accept or decline. This position is eligible for telework within the local commuting area of the position and other flexible work arrangements. Current USDA policy includes telework for an 8 hour work day, 4 days per week; other flexibilities are possible dependent upon availability and/or the position and its associated duties. Employee participation is at the discretion of the supervisor. Recruitment and/or relocation incentives may be authorized.